Improved brick-moulding machine



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TIMOTHY TUFTS, 0F SOMERVILLE, MASSACHUSETTS, 4ASSIGrNOR TOy 'CHARLES' C.BEERS AND PERSON DAVIS,

Letters .Patent No. 64,812, dated May 14,1867.

IMPROVED i BRICK-MOULDING MACHINE.

'IO ALL PERSONS TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME:

Be it known that I, TIMOTHY Tours, of Somerville, in the county ofMiddlesex, and State of Massachusetts, have invented a new and useful orimproved Machine for Moulding Bricks, and do hereby declare the same tobe fully described in the following specification, ind representedl inthe accompanying drawings, of which- Figure 1 is a top view. I i

Figure 2, a side elevation.

Figure 3, a front elevation 5 and ,p Figure 4, a longitudinal centraland vertical section of such machine.

'Y Figure 5 is a. vertical and transverse section, taken through theexpressing-chamber, its plunger and dis-v charging tubes, and themould-frame.

In such drawings, A represents a b ox or reservoir for holding the clayto be converted into bricks. This reservoir opens, at or near itsbottom, into an expressing-chamber, B, which is arranged against thefront of the reservoir, is open at top, and.l provided at bottom withone or more tubular mouths or convcyers, C C` C, extendingdown'therefrom, and opening out of the chamber. Each of these tubes C isrectangular in its horizontal section, and is about the shape and sizeof. a brick to be made.' There are to be as many of such tubes or mouthsC C as there aresopenings in the mould D for holding the bricks, andcach tube, while the mould is in the act of being elevated, whenunderneath the expressing-chamber, is to enter 'one of the openings a 1a of the said mould. l Within the expressing-chamber is a plunger, E,supported by two rods b b, having studs c c, to enter thegrooves d d oftwo .cam-wheels F F, fixed upon a horizontal shaft, G, arranged asrepresented. Figure 6 exhibits a side view of one of such cams with itsgroove. The purpose of the said cams F F is to elevate the plungerwithin the expressing-chamber, and allow it to fall or be suddenlyforced downward by the action of the Weighted lever p, to be hereinafterdescribed, its descent being simultaneous, or about so, with; that ofthemould on the veonveyers C C C. The mould D re's'ts on a bottom-board, e,which in turn is supported on a. stationary platform, j', arranged asrepresented. The said mouldand its bottom-board are moved iirstunderneath,'and next out from underneath, the expressing-chamber by acarriage, H, whose four wheels gygy are supported on two parallel railsI I, arranged as shown in the drawings. The said carriage H has a plate,K, applied to it, and so disposed that, when the carriage is forward tothe extreme of its movement, such plate is directly underneath, andclose against, the lower ends of the several delivery pipes or conveyersC C. t is between the front end of the plate K and the front bar L ofthe carriage "that the mould and its bottom-board are placed, each frontbar and plate K serving to move the said mould and its bottonrboard onthe platform f during the movement of the carriage Heither backward orforward. The proper movements of the carriage H are effected by means oftwo grooved cams z'z', two levers c 7c, and two connecting-rods ZZ,arranged as represented in the drawings, the cams being iixed on theshaft G. A cross-bar, n, fixed to the two rods b b, has a standard, o,erected on its middle, and resting at its top-against the lower edge ofa lever, p, carryinga weight, q, which' should be adjustable on thelever. The purpose of the said Weight is to depress the plunger, so asto cause it to expel the clay from the expressing-chamber and into the.mould-chambersv while the mould may be in the act of descending. Whenthe mould is directly underneath the expressing-ehamber the bottomboardof such mould rests on an elevator, L, whose vertical movements' aree'ected by two grooved cams r 7, and two rods s s, extending fromsuch'ca'ms to the elevator, such 'rods having studs t to enter thegrooves of the cams. One of the said cams r r isshownin side elevationin Figure 7. Furthermore, there is amechanism for insuring thedepression of the mould at the proper time. This mechanism consists oftwo rods t" t', arranged outside of, and near opposite ends. of, theexpressingchamber, and provided with springs a a for pushing 'the rodsdownward upon the mould. In order to relieve the mould'from the pressureofthe rodsand springs, pre1 paratory to its being moved out fromunderneath the expressing-chamber, the upper end ot each red. .isprovided with a stud, which is extended into and against an internalcam, u', formed in the outer face ot' one oi' the cama wheels F F. Ascraper, S', for cleaning the outer surfaces of the conveyers C C C,such scraper being formed in top view, as shown in Figure 8, is appliedto such conveyors, and is affixed to the two rods t/ t. It moves withthese rods, ts to the outside surfaces of the conveyers', and serves toscrape oli' any superfluous clay which may gather on them. The box orreservoir A, for holding the clay, has n. vertical shaft, M, extendingup through its centre, and provided with several series of radial arms11 v, which revolve with the shaft, and operate with stationary rods vzufw, extended across the reservoir, such arms and rods serving to mix andtem-per the clay, while the shaft M may be in the act of beingrevolved.'

In the above-described machine, it will be observed that the clay,instead of being discharged into the top of eachmou1dchan1ber,is firstled into the lower part' or upon the bottom of such chamber, and risesin the chamber, as the mould falls away from the expressing-chamber anddescends on the several tubular conveyors C C. These latter, inconjunction ivith the mould, serve to form the bricks, and in so doingoperate on a new principle, as they cause the clay to be uniformlyspread into each mould-chamber as it rises therein. In this way veryperfect bricks can he made, so closely resembling what are termedpressed bricks as to often render it diicult to distinguish anydifference between them. It may be mentioned that after the mould mayhave been filled with clay and moved out from underneath the series ofconveyors and upon thc stationary platform,

`an attendant should remove it from the said platform and substitute inits place another or unfilled mould.

What I claim as my invention is as follows: I claim the combination ofone or more tubular convcyers C, with the expressinghamber B, itsplunger E, and mould D, to operate substantially as specified.

I also claim the combination and arrangement of the covering plate Kwith the carriage H, one or more tubular oonveyers G, theexpressing-chamber and its plunger, the whole being provided withmechanism for operating them, substantially as specified. v i

I also claim the combination of' the mould-lifting and depressingmechanisms, with one or more tubular conveyers C, the expressing-chamberand its plunger, to operate with the mould, as specified.

I also claim the combination of the mould-operative carriage H with oneor more tubular conveyers C, the expressing-chamber and its plunger,applied to the mixing reservoir, and provided with mechanism for`operating them, substantially as specified.

I also claim the combination of the scraper S withA one or moreconveyers C, the expressing-chamber B,

and its plunger E, to operate with the mould, substantially as setforth.

' TIMOTHY TUF'lS.

Witnesses:

R. II. EDDY, F. P. HALE, Jr.

